Sitka Spruce Plantation
a.k.a. AHRS UNL-074;"The Forest"
N of Unalaska on Amaknak Island, Unalaska, AKThe planting of Sitka Spruce in 1805 on the naturally treeless Aleutian Island of Amaknak is the oldest recorded afforestation project on the North American continent. The project reflects Russian interest in developing the Aleutian Islands and making them, as well as all Russian America, more self-sufficient. A unique record of men's efforts to alter the natural setting, the trees are dwarfed in size and gnarled in appearance to survive in the hostile environment. Originally next to a pond in an uninhabited area, today the trees are visible from a road through the region and close to a housing project for the natives on the island. The trees divide unsurveyed land to the west that is filed for by the Aleut Corporation, and land to the east where a surface patent was given to the Ounalashka Native Corporation on September 12, 1975.
Local significance of the site:
Agriculture; Exploration/settlement
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
About National Register Listings
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.
In the late 1800s, there was a gold rush in Alaska that drew thousands of prospectors to the region. The Klondike Gold Rush of 1896-1899 brought tens of thousands of people to Alaska and the Yukon, and was one of the largest gold rushes in history.